Method and apparatus for extracting nicotin from tobacco material.



R. e. 'MEWBORNE.

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR EXTRACTJNG NICOTIN FROM TOBACCO MATERIAL.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 8.1912.

1,156,609. Patented Oct. 12, 1915;

llNTTED STATES PATENT UFFTQE.

ROBE T e. MEWBORNE, or LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY, ASSIGNOR To THE KENTUCKY TOBACCO PRODUCT COMPANY, A CORPORATION or NEW JERSEY.

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR EXTRACTING NICOTIN FROM TOBACCO MATERIAL.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patenteol'Oct. i2, 1915.

Application filed July 8, 1912. Serial No. 708,162.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that 1, ROBERT GRAHAM Mnwnonnn, a citizen of the United States, residing at Louisville, county of Jefferson, and State of Kentucky, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Methods and Apparatus for Extracting Nicotin from Tobacco Material, fully described and represented in the following specification and the accompanying drawings, forming a part of the same.

- The object of the present invention is to provide an efficient process and apparatus for recovering nicotin or other volatile constituents of tobacco, the invention being especially intended for treating tobacco dust but applicable also to treating tobacco stems or stalks or other tobacco refuse, tobacco leaf, or other tobacco material of any kind from which it is desired to extract the nicotin or other volatile constituents for any purpose.

The process .in its complete and preferred form consists in treating the tobacco material in a comminuted or divided state by maintaining the material'in a suspended or cloud form and passing steam therethrough while maintaining the extracting chamber at such a temperature as to prevent condensation, so that the extracted constitucuts are carried off by the steam which is then condensed or otherwise treated to recover or form a solution of the nicotine or other constituents extracted. The material to be treated is preferably finely divided or pulverized, as in the case of tobacco dust, but other tobacco material may be divided into small pieces and treated. The material usually will be moistened by a suitable alkali solution, as for instance, a caustic soda solution, and allowed to stand a suflicient time before treatment to liberate the nico:

tin, the time required depending on the character of the material, or the material may be treated otherwise, as by fermentation, to liberate the nicotin. Some tobacco material is in proper condition for the process without such nicotin freeing treatment. The steam preferably is used at as high a temperature as possible without decomposing the material to be treated or the nicotin or other volatile constituents, and the pressure will preferably be as low as consistent.

'vation of the apparatus.

with the best extraction of the nicotin for economy and convenience in sealing the extracting chamber against the escape of steam. A temperature of i50 F. can safely be used with dry tobacco dust or other Waste tobacco material, or the steam may be used at lower temperatures or even at higher temperatures if the the material is to be dried in the process. The drying of the material in the extracting process is'not essential, as the material'may be sufficiently dry before treatment, or may be delivered from the chamber in a moist condition, but when the processed material is to be used for fertilizer,

' the extracting process may well be arranged to'dry moist material sufliciently to put it into the best condition for the preparation of the fertilizer. While superheated steam is preferable, steam without superheat may be used and the invention, in its broadest aspect, includes the use of other extracting agents, such as hot air, with the nicotin washed therefrom after extracting, or other vapors than steam, or a mixture of thesewith steam. The material is preferably fed continuously through the extracting chamher, and the steam or other extracting agent preferably flows in'the opposite direction to the material, thus securing a more complete extraction and a concentration of the nicotin laden vapors, by the extracting vapors meeting first the nearly exhausted material and finally the fresh material.

In the accompanying drawings forming a ber to which the exhausted material is delivered from the cylinder, and E is the agitator withinthe cylinder by which the material is maintained in suspended or cloud form for treatment.

from the cylinder A through pipe F on which is arranged a cyclone or dust separa- The vapors containing the nicotin passvapors, and the vapors are shown as delivered from pipe F to condenser H of any suitable form, in which the vapors are con-- densed andfrom which the nicotin solution passes ofi through pipe 10. A superheater I is shown. p

Referring now to the detailed construc: tion of the parts in the apparatus shown, the cylinder A is supplied with extracting steam at the end from which the material is discharged by pipe 11 connecting with pipe 12 from superheater I to which steam is supplied through pipe 13, this pipe 12 being provided with the usual gage 14 and thermometer 15, and pipe 11 having also pressure gage 16. Steam pipe 12 also supplies steam to jacket B at the discharge end of cylinder A through inlet pipe 17, and 18 is the jacket outlet at the inlet end of cylinder A, the jacket being shown as provided with a safety valve 19, A regulating valve 1 is provided on pipe 11, by which the pressure of the extracting steam may be regulated as desired while maintaining a higher pressure in the steam jacket. The tobacco material is fed to the inlet end of the cylinder A at the desired rate by feed screw 20 receiv- A and jacket B are preferably gether and the jacket connected to the inlet ing the material from hopper 21, with the feed controlled by rotating star-wheel 22, and the passage of the material through the cylinder A is controlled and regulated by gate 23 closing the lower portion of the discharge end of the cylinder and adjusted vertically by set screw 24 so as to vary the height of the gate 23 from which the mate rial overflows to discharge chamber D. From discharge chamber D the extracted material is fed by feed screw 25 acting against door 26 closed by spring 27, so that the discharge is sealed against the escape of steam by the plug of material inside door 26 while the accumulated material may be fed out as the door is opened by the pressure of the material.

In the form of apparatus shown, the tobacco material is maintained in a suspended or cloud form by the agitator E, which consists of shaft 28.passing-.-through the cylinder and carrying a large number of paddles 29 arranged around-the shaft and preferably bent at their" outer ends as shown .at2, so as to constantly lift the material, tothe top of the cylinderand drop and the feed screws2eg'25 may be driven by any. suitable means, shaft'28 being shown as driven from the drivingshaft through beveled gears '30, and drlving feed screw 20 through gears 31, and the delivery screw 25 is shown as driven by sprocket chain orbelt 32., from any suitable source. The cylinder connected tochamber C by expansion joints 3, allowing it. Shaft 28 for difference of expansion between the cylinder and jacket walls.

The operation of the apparatus will be understood from a brief description in connection with the drawings.

A regulated feed of the material to "c'ylinder A by feed screw 20 is secured by the star-wheel 22, and the material passes through the cylinder slowly, the flow of the material over the top of gate 23, the level of the material in the cylinder being shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1, and the rate at which the material passes through the cylinder and the length of time it is treated, being regulated by adjusting gate 23 higher or lower as required. The tobacco material is maintained in a suspended or cloud state for the passage of the steam therethrough by the agitator E with its paddles 29', and condensation of the steam in the cylinder A is prevented and the according to proper temperature in the cylinder main-- tained by the steam jacket B, while the pressure of the extracting steam may be regulated as desired by cock 1. The escape of the vapors through the funnel 21 is prevented by the closing of the inlet by the material fed by star-wheel 22, so that the vapors pass through pipe F, and any dust carried over with the vapors is removed by the cyclone or dust separator G as the vapors pass to the condenser H for condensation.

The temperature and pressure of the steam used in the extractingchamber will "depend on the character of the material, the size and character of apparatus used, the rate of flow of the material, and the results desired. and the rate of flow or time during which the material is treated in the extracting chamber will vary also, this time preferably. being adjustable, as in the apparatus illustrated, so as to secure the proper action of the process under different conditions. 'i

As an illustration of the operation I state that, with theapparatus illustrated and the cylinder A about 12 feet long, excellent results have been secured in treating tobacco dust with the feed and rate offlow of the material adjusted so that the material passes utes, the agitator E having about 300 paddles and rotating about 70 revolutions per minute, and the extracting steam admitted at a temperature of about 450 F. and .a pressure of about 15 pounds. In this operation, about 200 pounds of tobacco dust were maintained and treated in the cylinder.

When other comminuted material, such as broken or cut up stalks or stems or tobacco 'Tl63,f is to be treated the process will be varied accordingly, the time oftreatment be- \ing correspondingly lengthened as compared with tobacco dust. The temperature-of the steam may be reduced at any point desired,

so long as condensation is prevented to such an extent as to keep the material in condition so that it may be maintained in a suspended or cloudform and the nicotin be carried off by the vapors, but reduction of temperature involves a longer treatment or less eliicient extracting operation.

While the steam jacketed extracting chamber is preferably used for economy and as a convenient means to assure the maintaining of the extracting chamber at the temperature required to prevent condensation in the tobacco material, either with or Without superheat in the extracting steam, it will be understood that the maintenance of this temperature may be secured in any other suitable manner, and that with superheated steam condensation may be prevented by suflicient superheating.

The process is especially valuable for treating tobacco dust and other Waste material, which after extraction of the nicotin is to be used for fertilizer, the process leaving the fertilizing constituents such as compounds of potassium and nitrogen in the tobacco material, and the material in proper condition for the preparation of the fertilizer, but the invention is not limited to such use,

It will be understood that the invention is not to be limited to the specific form or arrangement of parts in the apparatus shown, but that the process may be carried out in other apparatus of widely different forms, and the apparatus features of the invention embodied in other constructions.-

l/Vhat I claim is:

1. The process of extracting nicotin or other volatile constituents from tobacco dust.

the chamber to maintain it in suspended or cloud form, and passing a gaseous extractmg agent through the material-1n a dlrection opposite to the movement of the ma-' terial to carry off the nicotin or other constituents with the extracting agent.

8. The process of recovering nicotin or other volatile constituents from tobacco dust or other domminuted or divided tobacco material, which consists in maintaining the material in a suspended or cloud form, and passing a gaseous extracting agent through the material to carry off the nicotin or other constituents with the extracting agent, and

treating the agent after passage through the material for the recovery of the nicotin or other constituents.

4. The process of extracting nicotin or other volatile constituents from tobacco dust or other comminuted or divided tobacco material, which consists in maintaining the mapassing superheated steam through the material and maintaining such a temperature in the extracting chamber as to prevent condensatlon 1n the material.

other volatile constituents from tobacco dust or other comminuted ordivided tobacco material, which consists in passing-the tobacco material continuously through a chamher and continuously agitating the material in the chamber to maintain it in suspended or cloud form, and passing steam through the material in a direction opposite tothe movement of the material, and preventing condensation of the steam in the material. v

7. The process of recovering nicotin or other volatile constituents from tobacco dust or other comminuted or divided tobacco material, which consists in maintaining the material in a suspended or cloud form, and passing steam through the material, and preventing condensation of the steam in the material, and condensing the steam after passage through the material.

8. In an apparatus for extracting nicotin or other volatile constituents from comminuted, tobacco material, the combination, with means for maintaining the material in suspended or cloud form, and means for passing a gaseous extracting agent through the material while so suspended, of means for treating the agent after passage through the material to recover the nicotin or other constituents therefrom.

9. In an apparatus for extracting nicotin or other volatile constituents from comminuted tobacco material, the combination, with means for moving the material in one direction, and means for showering said material to maintain a dust or cloud thereof, of means for passing a gaseous extracting agent through the material in a direction opposite to the direction of movement of the material, and means for treating the agent after passage through the material to recover the nicotin or other constituents therefrom.

10. In an apparatus for extracting nicotin or other Volatile constituents from commi- 85 6. The process of extracting nicotin or nuted tobacco material, the combination, with means for maintaining the material in suspension and means for passing superheated steam through the material, of means for maintaining the material at a temperature such as to prevent condensation of vapor therein.

' 11. In an apparatus for extracting nicotin or other volatile constituents from comminuted tobacco material, the combination, with a chamber, and means for passing the tobacco material continuously through the chamber, of means for regulating the level of material in said chamber, means for lift ing material and allowing it to drop in said chamber above the said level, and means for passing a gaseous extractiveagent in con tact with said material while above said level. V v

12. In an appah atus for. extracting nicotin or other volatile constituents from comminuted tobacco material, the combination, with a chamber, and means for continuously feeding material to and from said chamber to maintain a flow of material therein, of

minuted tobacco material, the combination,

with an extracting chamber, and means for continuously feeding the material 1nto the chamber, of means for continuously agitating the material to maintain it in suspended or cloud form, an outlet for the chamber arranged to maintain the flow of material by overflow at the outlet, means for adjusting the overflow to vary the rate offiow of material, and means for passing a gaseous extractive agent through the suspended material. In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

ROBERT G. MEWBORNE. Witnesses:

C. J. SAWYER, J (A. GRAVES. 

